Leslie Leighninger

Hail and Farewell—Undergraduate Social Work and the Social Sciences, 1974–1979

Abstract This paper examines a random sample of undergraduate social work program catalogues and compares them with earlier surveys by Sherman Merle and Alfred Stamm to see what changes are taking place in the administrative and curricular relationship of social work to the social sciences. A tendency for programs to separate from social science departments, to increase social work requirements, and to teach more social science courses themselves was noted. Signs of lack of clear direction on the relationship of social work to the social sciences also were detected. The implication of these trends for the future of social work is discussed briefly.